Newsletter

McCollum's Column: Bears practice at 5:30 a.m. for a reason

The University of Central Arkansas football team began their first day in pads with an early wakeup call Wednesday.

They hit each other early and mourned late.

Jimmy Shumaker of Texarkana, a member of the Purple Circle booster organization for seven years, died last weekend in a Dallas hosptial. Although he played at the University of Arkansas and was an avid Razorback fan, the UCA Bears were his adopted favorite team. He hardly ever missed a UCA football game, home or away. He and his wife and Dennis Randall and his wife (parents of UCA noseguard T.J. Randall) became close friends and often traveled to games together.